Illuminated advertising device



F. D. CUMMINGS.

ILLUMINATED ADVERTISING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED AuG.3. 1921.

,427,678. Patented Aug. 29, 1922.

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INVEIIIT'QR.

UNITED STATES FRANK D. CUMMINGS, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

ILLUMINATED ADVERTISING DEVICE.

Application filed August 3, 1921. Serial No. 489,462.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, FRANK D. CUuMiNGs, a citizen of the United Sta-tes, residing at Los Angeles, inthe county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented new and useful improvements in lllumlnated Advertising Devices, of which` the following is a specification.

My invention relates to an illuminated advertising device, and -has for its object the provision of a relatively simple and practical apparatus that is adapted to be placed in the lobbies of hotels and oiiice buildings, or in stores, or on the outer walls of a building, and which device, by a simple operation, will indicate the location of all similar stores or business houses within a certain area or portion of a city, thereby. enabling a stranger or person unfamiliar with the locality of different stores or business houses to readily ascertain the location of a number of similar stores or business houses, and particularly the store or business house nearest to the point where the device is located. y

Further objects of my invention areto provide an illuminated advertising device that is of relatively simple structure, capable of being easily and cheap-ly produced, and which will be very effective in performing its intended Jfunctions.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, my invention consists in certain novel features of construction and arrangement of parts that will be hereinafter more fully described ,and claimed and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a plan view of an illuminated advertising device of my improved construction.

Fig. 2. is a cross section taken onv the line 2 2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the electric circuits utilized in my improved advertising device.

Fig. 4 is a plan view of a modified form of the advertising device.

Fig. 5 is a detail4 section taken on the line 5--5 of Fig. 4:.

ln the construction of my improved advertising device I employ a relatively shallow box-like structure including a back panel l0 that is preferably square or rectangular in shape and provided at its edges with walls 11. Supported by these walls in any suit- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 29, 17922.

able manner and occupying a position parallel with the back panel 10, is a sectiony 12 of translucent material.`l T he inner face of this translucent section 12 is painted or marked so as to provide a map or diagram of a poi'- tion of the business district of the city in which the device is to be used, and such map or diagram includes port-ions of the streets and the ground plan of the business buildings that occupy the blocks or squares between said streets. translucent section 12 that represent the streets are painted or marked with the names ot said streets, and the various spaces or sections within the blocks and which repre- Sent the stores or business houses, have marked or painted thereupon the names ot said stores or business houses.

An advertising device of my improved construction does not contemplate indicating on the map or diagram all of the business houses and stores within the district coveredby the apparatus, buton the other hand only a certain number of business houses or establishments, and particularly those that are most generally patronized by the public. for instance, drug stores, banks, hotels cafs, cigar stores, confectioners, motor vehicle dealers, and the like. Thus each device is intended to cover a certain area or portion of the business district of a city, land the location of all of the princip-al business houses and establishments within the district The portions of the.

is clearly indicated upon the translucent vbusiness are electrically connected by suitable conductors 15, and which latter extend to a suitable pocket or compartment 16 at one side or end of the box-like body of the device, and located in each circuit or in the connections between 'each set of lamps is a source'of electric current supply, preferably one or more dry batteries, suc-h as 17.

The boX-likebody portion of the device is provided on one side with the panel 18, and arranged thereon is a series of push button switches 19, there bein one of such switches located in each of t efcircuits of the device. .The respective pushbuttons 19 are properly marked or designated so as to guide the person making use of the device i in the proper manipulation thereof. If de- .similar institutions. i

sired, suitable partitions 120 may be arranged betweenI the panel 10 and the translucent section 12, which partitions are arranged at theedges of the various designated sections which are located all of the lamps that are positioned beneath the sections on translucentmember 12 that indicate banks and In order to'indicate to Athe userof the device the location thereof with respect 'to the section of the business district represented on the translucent member 12, an electric lamp 20 is located on the panel' 10 directly.

' beneath the point on the member 12 that corresponds with the location of the device, and this lampl is connected to one of the batteries of the apparatus so that it burns continuously. Thus a person making use ofthe device may readily-locate his position in the district covered by the device, and after'the proper switch button has been pressed, the location of all of the business houses in a "certain line may be readily ascertained.

In Figs. #l and 5 I have shown the modified construction wherein the k,translucent panel 12 is eliminated and the'location of various business establishments within a certain district are'indicatedv directly upon the surface of aplate or panel 21. Where such construction'jis employed, lamp sockets 22 are located in the plate or panel, said sockets receiving small electric -lamps, such as 23, and the sockets being connected as hereinbefore described and illustrated in Fig 3.

In some instances it may be found desirable to locatev the main body portion of the device in a show windowand to arrange the push button switches in a suitable panel von the exterior of the building in which the device is located', and thus the plat or diagram may be readily observed by personson the exterior of the buildin and the device may be operated to ascertain the location of'v ously.

a.convenient guide'to all institutions in cer.

tain lines of business throughout a definite area or portion of the business district of a city. n i

It will be understood that minor changes in size, form and construction of the various.'

arts of my improved illuminated advertis-` mg device may b e made and substituted for those herein shown and described without departing from the spirit of my invention,

the scope of which is set Jforth in pended. claims.

I claim as my invention: 1. In an illuminated signal device, a hous- `ing having a translucent section forming a cover for the housing, said section being marked to represent streets and business institutions of the definite section of a given district in a city, electric lamps arranged in respective association with the marked portions of the cover section, andnelectric circuits for said lamps and which circuits each include a normally open switch, all businessv institutions of a kind being specially indip cated by concurrently displayed signsvhen a selected switch of a given index as to kind of institution, is closed.

, 2. In an'illuminated advertising device, a shallow box-like structure, a section of translucent material forming the top of said box-like structure, said ltranslucent section having predetermined portionsl o-its surface provided with signal indicia, a series of partitions arranged within the box-like structure between the base thereof and the' section ofvtranslucent material, which partitions divide the space within said housing into a series of compartments corresponding in shape to the shape of the marked portions of the translucent section ofmaterial, la plulrality of electric circuits Within said 'boxlike structure, lamps located within said cincuits and disposed within said compartments, a normally open switch located in each lamp circuit, a single lamp located at' a predetermined point Within thehousing,

and said lamp being connected to a source' of electrical energy so as to burn continu- FRANK D. oUMMINGs.

testimony whereof have signed my i 

